American Family Association Action (AFA Action), is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to advancing biblical, family values in society and government by educating and influencing public policy. AFA Action is also the Governmental Affairs Affiliate of American Family Association (AFA).
CEO, President, & General Counsel of Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF)
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Waggoner’s father, Clint Behrends, is a Christian pastor and educator. He is a licensed minister in the Assemblies of God denomination and was the principal of the Christian school she attended from 1st through 12th. He is also an Associate Pastor of Cedar Park Church in Bothell, Washington.[1]
Waggoner attended a summer camp when she was 13 where she prayed and "saw clearly that defending ministries and religious freedom should be her path." She said, "That’s what I thought God was impressing on me to do, and it matched with my skill set."[2]
Waggoner attended Northwest University on a drama scholarship. Northwest University is a Christian school affiliated with Assemblies of God. She then attended Regent University School of Law, a Christian Law School.[3] According to one article, “What she treasures most about her upbringing, Waggoner says, is that she was steeped in consistent values at home, church, and school that shaped her worldview without sheltering her.”[4] After winning Regent’s “alumnus of the year” award, Waggoner recalled her time there. She said, “What stands out is remembering the presence of the Holy Spirit and how strong it is on this campus, and how free we are to express that; the spirit of that is very unique.”[5] Waggoner then worked for Ellis, Li & McKinstry, a large law firm made up of Christian attorneys which represented many large churches and religious organizations. She worked for them for 17 years and joined ADF in 2013.[6]
Waggoner joined The View with her client Jack Phillips to discuss the Supreme Court case. She defended Phillips’ conviction that marriage is between a man and a woman. She said, “The belief that marriage is between a man and a woman cuts across all of the major religions, across all cultures, all civilizations.” [7] Waggoner spoke out against the Equality act that would add sexual orientation and gender identity to protected classes under civil rights law. She said, “We are called to love God and our neighbor but because of that call, we cannot support elevating the vague categories of sexual orientation and gender identity into protected class status in the law because they are not only unbiblical, they are harmful to the conception of the human person”[8]
[1] Ken McIntyre, Meet the Lawyer Who’ll Argue at Supreme Court for Christian Baker’s Right to Free Speech, The Daily Signal (Dec 4, 2017), https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/12/04/meet-lawyer-wholl-argue-supreme-court-christian-bakers-right-free-speech/.
[2] Ken McIntyre, Meet the Lawyer Who’ll Argue at Supreme Court for Christian Baker’s Right to Free Speech, The Daily Signal (Dec 4, 2017), https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/12/04/meet-lawyer-wholl-argue-supreme-court-christian-bakers-right-free-speech/. (emphasis added).
[3] Ken McIntyre, Meet the Lawyer Who’ll Argue at Supreme Court for Christian Baker’s Right to Free Speech, The Daily Signal (Dec 4, 2017), https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/12/04/meet-lawyer-wholl-argue-supreme-court-christian-bakers-right-free-speech/.
[4] Ken McIntyre, Meet the Lawyer Who’ll Argue at Supreme Court for Christian Baker’s Right to Free Speech, The Daily Signal (Dec 4, 2017), https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/12/04/meet-lawyer-wholl-argue-supreme-court-christian-bakers-right-free-speech/ (emphasis added).
[5] Kristen Waggoner Selected for Regent University’s Alumnus of the Year Award, Regent University News (May 12, 2016) https://www.regent.edu/news-events/kristen-waggoner-selected-regent-universitys-alumnus-year-award/ (emphasis added).
[6] Ken McIntyre, Meet the Lawyer Who’ll Argue at Supreme Court for Christian Baker’s Right to Free Speech (Dec 4, 2017), https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/12/04/meet-lawyer-wholl-argue-supreme-court-christian-bakers-right-free-speech/.
[7] Baker In Supreme Court Gay Wedding Cake Jack Phillips Shares His Story | The View, The View (June 30, 2017), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=coBIZle18kM, at 9:31-9:37 (emphasis added).
[8] How Should Christians Respond to the Equality Act | Kristen K Waggoner, THINQ Media (June 20, 2021), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7_Zi5wRIds, at 0:22-0:31 (emphasis added).
Kristen Waggoner said that “[d]iversity’ advocates are so committed to shutting down opposing views that they don’t limit themselves to cultural pressures to get their way. They also use federal courts to improperly redefine federal law to marginalize opposing views.”[9]
[9] Kristen Waggoner, The Left Preaches Diversity While Forcing Conformity Through Culture And Courts, The Federalist, (June 11, 2019), https://thefederalist.com/2019/06/11/left-preaches-diversity-forcing-conformity-culture-courts/ (emphasis added).
In her article on 303 Creative v. Elenis, Waggoner argues that religious individuals do not lose their religious liberty upon entering the public square. Waggoner writes, “the incredible legacy we have found in the First Amendment says that we get to speak our minds, that we don’t lose our Constitutional rights when we enter the public square, and that when we do speak our minds, it really doesn’t matter how much the government, or my neighbor, agrees with me.”[10]
Kristen Waggoner has argued that the First Amendment works to “prevent officials from eliminating ideas they dislike from public dialogue and from punishing beliefs they want to purge from the public square.”[11]
[10] Kristen Waggoner, Kristen Waggoner on 303 Creative v. Elenis, Alliance Defending Freedom (Nov. 17, 2022), https://adflegal.org/article/kristen-waggoner-303-creative-v-elenis.
[11] Jerusalem Post Staff, Reuters, Supreme Court to Heart Dispute Between Evangelical Christian and LGBT Rights, The Jerusalem Post (Feb. 24, 2022), https://www.jpost.com/christianworld/article-698324.
Waggoner’s most well-known case was Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colo. Civil Rights Comm'n, 138 S. Ct. 1719 (2018). She was the lead counsel for Jack Phillips, a Christian baker that declined to bake a gay wedding cake.[12]
In Woods v. Seattle's Union Gospel Mission, Waggoner filed an amicus brief defending a mission that declined to hire a staffer whose sexual relationship violated the missions’ religious beliefs.[ii]
Waggoner defended a website designer that refused to make websites for same sex weddings as lead counsel for 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis.[13]
In State v. Arlene's Flowers, Inc., Waggoner supported a florist who refused to sell flowers for a same-sex wedding.[14] Waggoner wrote an article defending her. She said “No one should be bullied or banished from the marketplace for living out her or his beliefs about God and marriage..”[15]
Waggoner served as counsel for Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley to challenge the Nevada Governor’s anti-religious directive. The directive limited the number of attendees in church during COVID-19.[16]
[12] Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colo. Civil Rights Comm'n, 138 S. Ct. 1719 PDF Link: https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/17pdf/16-111_j4el.pdf.
[13] Woods v. Seattle's Union Gospel Mission, 197 Wn.2d 231 PDF Link: https://adflegal.org/sites/default/files/2021-08/8-2-21-SUGM-v-Woods-Cert-Petition.pdf PDF p. 30 (emphasis added).
[14] 303 Creative Ltd. Liab. Co. v. Elenis, 6 F.4th 1160, 1191 (10th Cir. 2021) PDF Link: https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/21/21-476/197814/20211027144118907_303%20Creative%20cert-stage.pdf (Emphasis added).
[15] State v. Arlene's Flowers, Inc., 193 Wash. 2d 469, (2019) PDF Link: https://openargs.com/wp-content/uploads/Arlenes-Flowers-after-Remand.pdf.
[16] Kristen Waggoner, Web designer, lawyer say court recognized she doesn’t reject classes of people, only messages, Washington Times (December 20, 2020), https://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/supreme-court-florist-case-same-intolerance-masterpiece/ (Emphasis added).
[17] Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley v. Sisolak, 982 F.3d 1228, 1234 (9th Cir. 2020) PDF Link: https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/19pdf/19a1070_08l1.pdf.
Waggoner stated that state legislatures have taken “important steps to reduce the harm of abortion in a number of ways,” and then went on to praise states who have implemented laws restricting abortion access, eugenics, and late term abortions, and “ensuring there are rigorous health and safety standards in place that limit abortion providers, as well as ensuring that there are informed consent requirements to help women make a good choice and choose life.”[18]
Kristen Waggoner stated that the Alliance Defending Freedom is “the world’s largest legal organization designed to protect the sanctity of human life.”[19]
Waggoner stated that her favorite part of advocating for life is not arguing before the Supreme Court, but instead “getting to stand with individual people in the pregnancy centers who want to and are being a voice for life.”[20]
In an article written by Waggoner and her ADF colleague Erin Hawley, Waggoner called the Dobbs decision “a win for life and the Constitution.”[21] Waggoner and Hawley wrote that Dobbs “finally reverses the court’s disastrous opinion in Roe v. Wade, a decision that made up a constitutional right to abortion and resulted in the deaths of more than 60 million unborn children.”[22]
After the Dobbs decision, Waggoner stated, “Fifty years of scientific progress and innovation establishes what the Bible has always taught: life begins at conception. Ultrasound technology allows expectant parents to see the truth of Psalm 139: children are fearfully and wonderfully made from the very beginning.”[23]
[18] Kristen Waggoner Speech, at 0:01:30 https://erlc.com/resource-library/event-messages/the-supreme-court-and-the-fight-for-life/.
[19] Kristen Waggoner Speech, at 0:03:00 https://erlc.com/resource-library/event-messages/the-supreme-court-and-the-fight-for-life/.
[20] Kristen Waggoner Speech, at 0:03:30 https://erlc.com/resource-library/event-messages/the-supreme-court-and-the-fight-for-life/.
[21] Kristen Waggoner, Erin Hawley, A Victory for Life and the Constitution, World (June 24, 2022) https://wng.org/opinions/a-victory-for-life-and-the-constitution-1656086588.
[22] Kristen Waggoner, Erin Hawley, A Victory for Life and the Constitution, World (June 24, 2022) https://wng.org/opinions/a-victory-for-life-and-the-constitution-1656086588.
[23] Kristen Waggoner, Erin Hawley, A Victory for Life and the Constitution, World (June 24, 2022) https://wng.org/opinions/a-victory-for-life-and-the-constitution-1656086588 (emphasis added).
In an article for the Daily Wire, Waggoner stated, “It is amazing that this has to be clarified: no one should lose his or her job for believing that men and boys are male and that women and girls are female. This is a biological fact; all the surgeries and hormones in the world cannot change the reality that every single cell of a man’s body is encoded with an X and a Y chromosome, and every single cell in a woman’s body is encoded with two X chromosomes. Biological sex cannot be changed.”[24]
Waggoner has called transgenderism “the most pernicious ideology of our time.”[25]
After YouTube pulled down a video of a de-transitioner sharing his experience, Waggoner wrote an article about how harmful this viewpoint discrimination is for free speech and the harm it does to those suffering from the social contagion. She said, “The lives and health of countless individuals are on the line. The number of young people who claim to experience gender dysphoria has skyrocketed in the past decade, and yet some doctors encourage young people — even minors — to address their dysphoria with irreversible hormone treatments and surgeries. At the same time, a serious lack of transparency exists about the harms of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones.”[26]
Media Matters has criticized Waggoner for not using a transgender person’s preferred pronouns.[27]
When the DOJ filed a statement of interest against a Connecticut policy that allowed men to compete with women if they identified as such, Waggoner praised the statement. She said, “Maintaining separate athletic contests for boys and girls is based on real biological differences—differences that matter to fair competition and the law. In its statement of intent to the federal district court handling the lawsuit, the DOJ echoed ADF’s concerns.”[28]
[24] Kristen Waggoner, WAGGONER: J.K. Rowling ‘Controversy’ Shows Women Have Most To Lose With Gender Identity Ideology, DailyWire (January 9, 2020), https://www.dailywire.com/news/waggoner-j-k-rowling-controversy-shows-women-have-most-to-lose-with-gender-identity-ideology (Emphasis added).
[25] Kristen Waggoner, Can we make common cause with unbelievers?, World (May 18, 2023), https://wng.org/opinions/can-we-make-common-cause-with-unbelievers-1684409082 (Emphasis added).
[26] Kristen Waggoner, YouTube’s Transgender Problem, National Review (June 25 2020), https://www.nationalreview.com/2020/06/youtubes-transgender-problem/ (Emphasis added).
[27] Brennan Suen, On Fox, Alliance Defending Freedom attorney Kristen Waggoner repeatedly misgenders trans woman, Media Matters (January 9, 2019), https://www.mediamatters.org/laura-ingraham/fox-alliance-defending-freedom-attorney-kristen-waggoner-repeatedly-misgenders-trans (Emphasis added).
[28] Kristen Waggoner, COVID-19 Isn’t the Only Thing Derailing Women’s Sports, Townhall (May 15, 2020), https://townhall.com/columnists/kristenwaggoner/2020/05/15/covid19-isnt-the-only-thing-derailing-womens-sports-n2568844 (Emphasis added).
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Waggoner has said that “Christian parents cannot afford to relinquish responsibility for their intellectual and spiritual formation of their children—whether they are homeschooled, attending a Christian school, or enrolled in the local public school.”[29]
Waggoner acknowledges that parents cannot control the outcome of their child’s life. However, she makes it clear that parents do carry “the responsibility—and yes, the legal right—to offer protections, guidelines, and love. That’s no role a government agency, bureaucrat, or employee can fill.”[30]
Waggoner describes Critical Theory as “hold[ing] our country and its founding principles in deep contempt. It maintains we all live under an oppressive societal order where hard work, religion, and the natural family are primarily tools of ‘oppression’ and must be ‘dismantled.’”[31]
[29] Kristen Waggoner, The Kids Are Not Alright, WORLD (Apr. 19, 2022), https://wng.org/opinions/the-kids-are-not-alright-1650367911 (emphasis added).
[30] Kristen Waggoner, The Kids Are Not Alright, WORLD (Apr. 19, 2022), https://wng.org/opinions/the-kids-are-not-alright-1650367911. (emphasis added).
[31] Kristen Waggoner, The Kids Are Not Alright, WORLD (Apr. 19, 2022), https://wng.org/opinions/the-kids-are-not-alright-1650367911.
When Kristen Waggoner became president of Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) in 2022, the ADF said that she has done well to oppose government encroachment on freedoms, and noted that while she was counsel with the ADF, it expanded its work against the administrative state:[32]
[32] ADF names new president, CEO, Alliance Defending Freedom (Aug. 19, 2022), https://adflegal.org/press-release/adf-names-new-president-ceo.
Kristen Waggoner has been the general counsel of ADF since 2013. Waggoner’s first interaction with ADF was when the firm assisted her in preparing to defend Washington’s ban on same-sex marriage.[33] Waggoner oversees 400 ADF team members, 7 global offices, and 4,500 network attorneys all working for or under the faith-based legal organization.[34] Waggoner successfully argued two cases before the Supreme Court. One of these cases was Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, which safeguarded religious liberty rights.[35] Kristen Waggoner served as a partner at the Seattle-based firm Ellis, Li & McKinstry (“ELM”) from 2004 to 2013.[36] Waggoner began working at ELM in 1998 and became a partner in 2004.[37] At ELM, Waggoner served as counsel for cases regarding constitutional issues like financial aid to religious university students and pharmacists’ conscience rights.[38] Kristen Waggoner clerked for Justice Richard Sanders on the Washington Supreme Court from 1997 to 1998.[39] Justice Sanders was affiliated with the Republican Party.[40] Justice Sanders is affiliated with the Federalist Society.[41] Kristen Waggoner graduated from Regent University School of Law in 1997.[42] When asked what drew her to study and practice the law, Waggoner answered, “I think that the pursuit of justice is something that really motivated me, and taking stands on principle.”[43]
[33] Ken McIntyre, Meet the Lawyer Who’ll Argue at Supreme Court for Christian Baker’s Right to Free Speech, The Daily Signal (Dec. 4, 2017), https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/12/04/meet-lawyer-wholl-argue-supreme-court-christian-bakers-right-free-speech/.
[34] Alliance Defending Freedom, ADF, https://adfinternational.org/kristen-waggoner/.
[35] Alliance Defending Freedom, ADF, https://adfinternational.org/kristen-waggoner/.
[36] Alliance Defending Freedom, ADF, https://adfinternational.org/kristen-waggoner/.
[37] Ken McIntyre, Meet the Lawyer Who’ll Argue at Supreme Court for Christian Baker’s Right to Free Speech, The Daily Signal (Dec. 4, 2017), https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/12/04/meet-lawyer-wholl-argue-supreme-court-christian-bakers-right-free-speech/.
[38] Alliance Defending Freedom, ADF, https://adfinternational.org/kristen-waggoner/.
[39] Kristen Waggoner, LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristen-waggoner-b44ba133/details/experience/ .
[40] Richard Sanders, Ballotpedia, https://ballotpedia.org/Richard_Sanders.
[41] Richard Sanders, Federalist Society, https://fedsoc.org/contributors/richard-sanders.
[42] Ken McIntyre, Meet the Lawyer Who’ll Argue at Supreme Court for Christian Baker’s Right to Free Speech, The Daily Signal (Dec. 4, 2017), https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/12/04/meet-lawyer-wholl-argue-supreme-court-christian-bakers-right-free-speech/.
[43] Ken McIntyre, Meet the Lawyer Who’ll Argue at Supreme Court for Christian Baker’s Right to Free Speech, The Daily Signal (Dec. 4, 2017), https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/12/04/meet-lawyer-wholl-argue-supreme-court-christian-bakers-right-free-speech/.
During Covid, Kristen Waggoner advocated for churches, and against government overreach. In an interview, Kristen Wagoner said: “We would go to government officials and say hey, excuse me, there are certain limits to your authority here, um, let's talk about what those limits are.”[44]
Discussing the source of our rights, Kristen Waggoner said “Well, we have to go back to first principles . . . at ADF, one of the things we talk about is that our first amendment rights aren’t just constitutionally guaranteed. They are actually God-given. They are inalienable rights. They’re a-political. They weren’t created by the United States of America. . .”[45]
Kristin Waggoner spoke on the limits placed on our government, saying that “the Constitution placed limits o[n] government officials . . . the government can’t act in a hostile manner toward people of faith or toward religious organizations . . . we’ve seen the Supreme Court affirm that principle.” [46]
[44] Kristen Waggoner at Q Sessions: Church and State, YouTube (Sept. 2, 2020), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmFjBwDicrw at 02:10-02:20 (emphasis added).
[45] Kristen Waggoner at Q Sessions: Church and State, YouTube (Sept. 2, 2020), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmFjBwDicrw at 03:45-04:05 (emphasis added).
[46] Kristen Waggoner at Q Sessions: Church and State, YouTube (Sept. 2, 2020), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmFjBwDicrw at 04:15-04:39 (emphasis added).
Best meets the ten principles of a constitutional judge.
Rating: GreyNeutral. Record is not as fully developed. Cannot be rated as “green” or “red.”
Rating: RedFails to meet the ten principles of a constitutional judge.
AFA Action is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to advancing biblical, family values in society and government by educating and influencing public policy. AFA Action is also the Governmental Affairs Affiliate of American Family Association.